A Georgia couple says they were on their front porch Saturday night when several officers arrived to break up a large party down the street.
But instead of focusing on the party-goers, Ivan and Shanna Tory said the City of Monroe officers exchanged words with them. Then, Ivan Tory was tased multiple times and his wife said police then pointed a gun at her.
One of the officers involved was suspended without pay after video surfaced showing him dragging, Tasing and then arresting the man, the department’s chief said Monday afternoon.
“We were minding our own business on our own porch,” Shanna Tory told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday.
But officers told the Torys and others to go inside. Her husband told officers there was no reason for him to go inside, Shanna Tory said.
“You’re being very disrespectful,” Ivan Tory said. “This is my house. I’m a family man.”
But Tory, 32, was arrested and charged with obstruction, according to his arrest warrant.
“He walked straight to him, grabbed his arm and started tasing him,” Shanna Tory said. “They tased my husband, grabbed him by one leg and dragged him down the sidewalk by his pants.”
Tory said her husband, a father of five, was knocked unconscious for about 45 seconds. When she tried to check on him, an officer pointed a gun at her. After her husband was placed in a patrol car, Tory said she was allowed to pull a Taser prong out of his chest.
“Who’s next? Who’s next?” the officer yells in cellphone video obtained by the AJC.
Tory posted video of the incident on her public Facebook page.
“They really did my husband wrong please help me spread the word!!!” Shanna Tory posted on Facebook. “Tased him til he was completely passed out 😵 then tased me for trying to save him!!!”
Monroe police Chief R.V. Watts did not respond Monday to messages about the incident. Monday afternoon, the department posted a letter from Watts on Facebook. He said several party-goers were arrested, but Watts did not identify them or their charges, citing the ongoing investigations.
Watts did not identify the officer. But on Tory’s arrest warrant, the officer is identified as Walter Clough.
“In response to the manner taken by one of our officers and how he addressed the situation and conducted himself towards the community I do see a seriously policy violation as it pertains to our Code of Conduct,” Watts said.
Watts said the officer’s actions were a negative reflection of the department and its relationships in the community.
“This particular officer has been found to be in violation of our Code of Conduct and has been suspended from the department without pay and will have to conduct and complete remedial and corrective training,” Watts wrote.
Shanna Tory said her children were traumatized by watching their father’s arrest. The officers escalated the situation, she said.
“They’re not setting a good example for our youth,” she said. “If they’re not setting a good example for our youth, then who is?”
Both Shanna and Ivan Tory have minor injuries and say the situation could have been worse.
“I am so thankful that they pulled the taser gun instead of a real gun. They pointed the real gun at me,” Shanna Tory said. “They aimed the taser straight at his chest, so if it had been a real gun, it would’ve killed him.”
Monroe is in Walton County, about 45 miles east of Atlanta.
A GBI spokeswoman said the agency has not been asked to investigate the incident.
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